Friday, July 20, 2012

Sorry...took awhile to get back.
Hubby and I had a lovely 10 day drive down the New England Highway to Bathurst, the Jenolan Caves, the Blue Mountains and the Hunter Valley. As I said in the last post, the main aim was a visit to Anni Down's store -The Home Patch, but we also got to see other parts of our lovely country that neither of us had seen before.

Of course, we both had a drive around Bathurst's Mt. Panorama race circuit. (Note to non- Aussies - this race circuit is in real life a normal road , but 2 times a year becomes the scene of some great car racing.) It would have to be the best bit of bitumen in Australia!

The Jenolan Caves are thought to be the oldest cave system in the world - around 340 million years old. We really enjoyed our day here and would recommend it to anyone.
Before leaving Bathurst, I was able to have coffee with blogmate Janice before she started work for the day. No photo - we only had a short time together and we were talking too fast to even think about getting the camera out.

We stayed at Glenella - a comfortable old guest house/ B&B at Blackheath in the Blue Mountains. They had a warm and inviting log fire in their large guest lounge. The photo, above and left, is of one of the 3 rides at Scenic World at Katoomba. It is the 52 degree scenic railway (in other words really steep). Originally it was the railway used by miners to remove coal from mines at the bottom of the cliffs, early in the 1900s. Later, bushwalkers would ask for a lift back to the top instead of climbing out. Eventually it became a tourist attraction. It is quite daunting. Another way to the bottom is the cable car. The Skyway goes from one point to another over a gorge with a great view of the Katoomba Falls. The Skyway has a glass floor so you can see down to the bottom of the gorge.

We finished up in the Hunter Valley wine country. We did a 'Hunters and Gatherers' tour with the 'Two Fat Blokes' - a delicious tour with a friendly fun and very informative host. I'd be happy to go back there again.

Actually I'd be happy to go back to everywhere we went. All in all, it was a restful time away, enjoying seeing new places.

But back to normal life now, which has included some productive sewing.

Friday, July 13, 2012

Hayley Wilson is the talented young daughter of a workmate (and proud mum). She has loved music for a long time and would love to make it her profession. Recently she attended a 2 week course in the heart of Australia's country music scene -Tamworth - where she was mentored in stagecraft and songwriting. I believe a highlight for her was meeting one of her idols and performing in the last night concert.
I hope she achieves her dreams but remembers to also enjoy the journey.
Have listen...

Friday, July 6, 2012

The above photo shows my purchases from the Sydney Craft Show. Missing is a little clip-on light and 2 bundles of FQs form the Kaffe Fassett collective. I bought mainly tools. I wasn't going to admit to the FQ bundles. I was on my way out the door when I saw them. I picked one bundle, paid and moved on, only to go around the block and go back for the other bundle. In my defence, I did leave the 3rd bundle there! (But only just and I have their card.) They will be put to good use when I start Sue Daley's Square Dance.

As I explained in the last post, Hubby and I just had a lovely 10 day driving holiday. A major highlight was visit to The Home Patch - Anni Downs's delightful store. The stash in the photo above was not all bought at Anni's - just all the left and bottom part. Anni only had one bolt of her own 'My Favourite Things' fabric range left. I also picked up some more linen from her. Shops up here sell the books and patterns that use it but not the fabric.The 3 bright FQs were from Blackheath Patchwork and the 4 other pieces of Anni's fabric were from Tamworth Patchwork (I don't think I have their correct name). My purchases might seem a bit overboard, but it was a treat visit and my birthday, so that's the excuse I'm going with. LOL

I can stop being jealous now of all the Home Patch visits, I read about. If you've never been, love Anni's work and get a chance to go, DO IT. It is not a huge store, but one filled with lots of atmosphere. All the items from the books and patterns are there to see and touch, lots of lovely gift items, heaps of ideas, encouragement and welcome. Bathurst also has lots of other attractions.

I'll keep my holiday photos for my next post. After a very hectic June, life has returned to a slower pace. I'll also be able to reply to comments from the last post. Sorry I have not answered before now, but Internet access was limited while we were away.
Take care,
Kayly

About Me

Hi! I'm the lucky wife of a wonderful man, mum of a 26 year old son and grandmother of 2 cuties. I live in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. I dabble in a number of crafts including patchwork, crochet and embroidery. I love my garden and I even do the housework occasionally.